Ivey issues countersuit in Borgata edge-sorting case

essional poker player Phil Ivey is countersuing an Atlantic City casino which formally accused him of cheating last year.

Ivey and his co-defendant – Cheung Yin Sun – filed a countersuit last week against the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, which had claimed in 2014 that the pair won $9.6m at its baccarat tables using a technique called edge-sorting, constituting cheating in the eyes of the casino.

The Borgata suit said Ivey and Sun took advantage of imperfections in the card-making process, using these defects to sort and arrange good cards in alleged contravention of New Jersey casino gaming regulations, over four sessions of baccarat played at the casino in 2012.

Upon identifying defective cards, Ivey and Sun stand accused of requesting these cards be rotated in the dealing process, allowing Ivey to take note of these cards for future hands and bet accordingly, giving himself an advantage over the casino.

Ivey has alleged that the Borgata either fraudulently or negligently destroyed the cards involved, “eviscerating the defendants’ ability to prove the lack of any defective cards”.

In his counterclaim, Ivey said Gemaco, the firm responsible for producing the cards within contractual and industry standards, should be held accountable for any dissimilarity.

Ivey and Sun have demanded unspecified compensatory and punitive damages against the Atlantic City casino.

Ivey lost a high court case in the UK against Genting – owners of London casino Crockford’s – over edge-sorting in October 2014.

The Malaysian operator refused to pay out Ivey’s £7.7m baccarat winnings from the Mayfair casino due to his use of the technique.